IN RE NAMENDA INDIRECT PURCHASER ANTITRUST LITIGATION

Filing 412

ORDER terminating #409 Letter Motion to Compel. The January 10, 2020 email indicates Plaintiff's agreement to limit the deposition of Mr. Meury to 2 hours. The fact that the deposition will be held remotely does not provide a basis for the Plaintiff's current request for a 5-hour or even 3.5-hour deposition. The deposition shall be 2.5 hours, based on Forest's proposal to extend the deposition by half an hour. SO ORDERED. (Signed by Magistrate Judge Robert W. Lehrburger on 5/22/2020) (ks)

Case 1:15-cv-06549-CM-RWL Document 409 Filed 05/19/20 Page 1 of 2
412
05/22/20

firstein 
Peter Saf
Direct Di 212‐201‐284
ial: 
45 
psafirstein@safirsteinm
metcalf.com 

5/22/2020
May
M 19, 2020

VIA ECF
F
The Honorable Robe W. Lehrburger
ert
United States Magist
trate Judge
Daniel Pa
atrick Moyn
nihan United States Cour
d
rthouse
500 Pear St., Room 1960
rl
New Yor NY 1000
rk,
07-1312
Re:

In re Namenda Indirect P
n
Purchaser A
Antitrust Lit
tigation [SBF Action],
Case No. 1:15-CV-06549
C
9-CM-RWL (S.D.N.Y.)
L
)

Dear Jud Lehrburg
dge
ger:
We
W write to seek the Cou
s
urt’s assistan to resolv a dispute between Pl
nce
ve
e
laintiff’s Counsel
and Coun for Fore regarding the length of time the C
nsel
est
g
Court will permit for the upcoming party
e
depositio of William Meury, scheduled for May 29th an to be take by remote means give the
on
m
nd
en
e
en
ongoing pandemic. Mr. Meury h been a lo time exe
M
has
ong
ecutive of Fo
orest (and su
uccessor enti
ities),
but is not and has not been the CEO.
t
t
In the Court’s Order that governs thi deposition dated Dec
n
t
is
n,
cember 16, 2
2019 (ECF: 322),
the Court Ordered, “6 Unless oth
t
6.
herwise agre to or ord
eed
dered by the Court, any o the other (
of
(nonCEO) dep
positions shall be limited to 3.5 hou
urs.”
Counsel have had numer
C
e
rous commu
unications re
egarding the scheduling of Mr. Me
e
g
eury’s
depositio Plaintiff’ Counsel’s position i that the d
on.
’s
s
is
deposition s
should be sc
cheduled fo the
or
allowed 3.5 hours with extra tim permitted for the real
w
me
d
lities associa
ated with remote deposi
itions
during th ongoing public health crisis, such that the res
he
p
h
h
served time should be 5 hours. Ther are
re
reports o other coun in differ
of
nsel
rent litigation who have proceeded w remote depositions only
with
s
to find th process cumbersome and signific
he
c
cantly slowe than usual. We repres
er
sented to counsel
for Mr. M
Meury that we would en
w
ndeavor to c
complete the deposition in 3.5 hour but wante an
e
rs,
ed
extra cus
shion to be certain to com
mplete the de
eposition.
Counsel for Mr. Meury maintains that Plaint
C
y
tiff’s counsel had agre
eed to limi the
it
depositio to 2 hours during a pr meet and confer. Th agreemen contempla an in-pe
on
s
rior
d
his
nt
ated
erson
depositio There was, however never an ag
on.
r,
greement reg
garding a rem deposi
mote
ition and wit the
th
change o circumstan
of
nces there is presently no agreement. Counsel fo Mr. Meur have offer to
o
or
ry
red
make Mr Meury ava
r.
ailable for 2.5 hours.
_______ __________
__________
___________
__________
__________ __________
__________
_____  
Safirstein Metcalf LL The Emp
n
LP
pire State Bu
uilding, 350 Fifth Ave., 5 th Fl., New York, NY 10118
59
w

Case 1:15-cv-06549-CM-RWL Document 409 Filed 05/19/20 Page 2 of 2
412
05/22/20
May 19, 2020
Page 2
We seek to enforce the Court’s December 16, 2019 Order permitting the deposition to go
for 3.5 hours, with additional consideration given to an additional 1.5 hours so that we can be
comfortably assured that the remote deposition will not have unnecessary time barriers.

Respectfully submitted,
/s/Peter Safirstein
Peter Safirstein
Safirstein Metcalf LLP
cc: all counsel of record (via ECF)
The January 10, 2020 email indicates Plaintiff's
agreement to limit the deposition of Mr. Meury to
2 hours. The fact that the deposition will be held
remotely does not provide a basis for the
Plaintiff's current request for a 5-hour or even
3.5-hour deposition. The deposition shall be 2.5
hours, based on Forest's proposal to extend the
deposition by half an hour.

5/22/2020

_____________________________________________________________________________  
Safirstein Metcalf LLP The Empire State Building, 350 Fifth Ave., 59th Fl., New York, NY 10118